Applications are now being accepted for speaker submissions for a virtual podcasting summit happening in July. “Podthon ’20, now in its second year, will showcase 20 speakers at all levels of the independent podcasting industry,” co-founder Danielle Desir said. “With the success we experienced last year, we wanted to open up the window for speaker submissions earlier in the season since we have limited spots.”

“Podcasters of all levels are invited to submit their pitches for talks,” co-founder Lee Uehara said. “We expect a lot from our speakers, and we coach them to be able to speak on the biggest stages. Folks just need to have a current show to be eligible.” The deadline is Friday, May 22, 2020, at 11:59 PM (EST).

Speakers need to submit a unique idea, a high-resolution profile photo, answer all the questions and be willing to follow all the technical requirements which are part of the judging criteria, Uehara said. “Because, in this day and age, there is no excuse for poor audio or video.”

Past speakers include LaTasha James of The Freelance Friday Podcast, Jen Hemphill of Her Dinero Matters, and Andy Wang of Inspired Money.

Podthon is the brainchild of two leading industry groups, the Asian American Podcasters Association (AAP) and Women of Color Podcasters (WOCP). One pillar of its mission is to encourage more people of color to become speakers and have a presence on more stages worldwide. Podthon, a virtual summit for podcasters, will be held on Saturday and Sunday, July 18-19, 2020.

Danielle Desir is a travel finance strategist, podcaster, writer and the founder of The Thought Card. The Thought Card is an award-winning travel finance blog and podcast about affording travel, paying off debt and building wealth. Danielle paid off $63,000 of student loan debt in 4 years, she bought a house at 27 and she has traveled to over 25 countries. She refuses to let her financial responsibilities hold her back from pursuing her dreams and she encourages her readers and listeners to live life on their own terms.